Welcome to Suomikoulu DC, the Finnish school of Washington DC

About Us

Suomik­oulu DC is part of the world­wide Suomi-koulu or­ga­ni­za­tion, which is working to pre­serve Finnish cul­ture and lan­guage among young people of Finnish origin. The Suomi-koulu or­ga­ni­za­tion’s work is sup­ported by the Finnish gov­ern­ment. Our pri­mary goal is to sup­port par­ents in their ef­forts to transfer Finnish lan­guage and her­itage to their chil­dren. We focus on teaching chil­dren to un­der­stand and speak Finnish. Reading and writing are taught when chil­dren are ready. Our school also of­fers chil­dren var­ious ex­pe­ri­ences re­lated to Finnish cul­ture, such as art and crafts. Feel free to contact us if you’re interested in learning more. Thank you for vis­iting!

P.S. We use English when com­mu­ni­cating ad­min­is­tra­tive mat­ters since we have some par­ents who are not fluent in Finnish. How­ever, at school we aim to use only Finnish with the chil­dren.

P.S. Osaamme suomea eri­no­mais­esti, vaikka netti­sivumme ovatkin englan­niksi. Englanti on koulumme vi­rallinen vi­estin­täkieli, jotta voimme palvella myös suomea taita­mat­tomia vanhempia. Koulu­tiloissa pyrimme käyttämään pelkästään suomen kieltä.

Suomikoulu DC, Inc. admits students of any race, color, national and ethnic origin to all the rights, privileges, programs, and activities generally accorded or made available to students at the school. It does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national and ethnic origin in administration of its educational policies, admissions policies, scholarship and loan programs, and athletic and other school-administered programs.

News

Classes

Classes will be held every other Saturday from 10 am to 1 pm; please see our calendar for exact dates. Instruction focuses on developing the students’ Finnish language comprehension and oral skills. Our older students also practice their Finnish reading and writing skills. Each teacher plans an engaging school day with fun activities to encourage the students practice their Finnish skills in a range of ways. Arts and crafts activities are incorporated into the school day to further increase the children’s understanding and appreciation of the Finnish culture and traditions. Each group gets to visit the school library to take out some Finnish books for home. The school day also includes a break for lunch and recess.

Oravat (3-4 years)

The focus in this age group is learning and practising spoken Finnish, and to enrich the children’s vocabulary in a nurturing atmosphere. During the day we sing songs, read stories, play various musical games and rhymes. We make arts and crafts that reflect the season and Finnish culture.

Book used:
Pyyhittävä Heikun keikun -puuhakirja (Oppi&ilo)

Si­ilit (4-5 years)

Children in this group focus on learning Finnish through songs, rhymes, stories, crafts and games. We also learn Finnish letters and sounds, but the main focus is on learning fluent spoken Finnish and enriching the students’ vocabulary.

Book used:
Pikkumetsän esiopetus (WSOY)

Porot (6-7 years)

Children in this group focus on learning the basics of reading and writing in Finnish. We aim to build a strong foundation of sound, syllable and word-level fluency in both reading and writing. Spoken language and vocabulary are developed through games, rhymes, songs, stories and poetry. We learn about different Finnish celebrations throughout the year and engage in a range of arts and crafts activities.

Books used:
Seikkailujen Aapinen (Otava)
Seikkailujen tehtäväkirja 1, syksy (Otava)

Ketut (7-9 years)

The Fox class is a group of children who speak two or more languages at home and Finnish primary only with one parent. Most children in this class speak Finnish with fluency and know the basics of reading and writing in Finnish. In this class, the emphasis is on developing children’s understanding of spoken Finnish, broadening vocabulary, and deepening Finnish cultural knowledge by having a fun time through games, stories, crafts and play.

Books used:
Apilatien lukukirja ja harjoituskirja (Sanoma Pro)

Karhut (9-13 years)

Karhut group consists of our oldest students, aged 9 to 13. Students in this group already master spoken Finnish and are also able to read in Finnish fluently. In this class, the emphasis is on broadening the students’ vocabulary, improving their grammatical proficiency as well as accuracy of written text. Karhut group also learns about Finnish culture, traditions and key events in the Finnish history. Art and craft activities are incorporated into each school day.

Books used:
Kulkuri 3 (Sanoma Pro)
Kynäkulkuri 3 harjoituskirja (Sanoma Pro)

Contact Us

If you are interested in our classes, please send us an e-mail and we will get back to you as soon as possible.

Address
6201 Washington Blvd
Arlington, VA
22205

Facebook
SuomikouluDC

Email
suomikouludcarea@gmail.com